The Stench of Redemption
The Stench of Redemption is the eighth studio album by Deicide. It is the first album by the band to feature Jack Owen (formerly of Cannibal Corpse) and Ralph Santolla (formerly of Iced Earth) on guitars. Two tracks were released exclusively via iTunes on June 6, 2006 (note: Number of the Beast|6/6/6). The tracks are "Homage for Satan" and "Crucified for Innocence". Deicide decided to release the "digital EP" via the internet because of financial problems that the band and Earache Records had. The band has also canceled some of their gigs because of the money problems. As with albums before it, the disc features themes of destruction and anti-Christianity. The album was Deicide's most successful release to date, peaking at #11 on the Top Heatseekers chart. The Turkish Metal Music Awards of 2006, conducted by Turkish webzine Bira Darkzine, has recognized The Stench of Redemption as the best metal album of 2006, as voted by the Turkish public. This is the first Deicide album have writing credits attributed to individual band members. All the music is written by Steve Asheim and all the lyrics by Glen Benton, although Jack Owen and Ralph Santolla are given credit for "additional arrangements, harmonies & themes." Many critics have praised this album as a return to form for Deicide, despite the band losing both Eric and Brian Hoffman, the two founding members. There is a noticeable change in the guitar work, as guitar leads are much more prevalent and sometimes even reach epic proportions (a good example being the closing cut, "The Lord's Sedition", which is not only the longest Deicide song to date, but also notable for the moody, dark, clean guitar intro). The style of the solos on the album is also drastically different than it has been on previous Deicide records. Ralph Santolla and Jack Owen utilize a neo-classical style of guitar soloing along with the traditional riffing of Deicide. Many fans have also noticed Glen's trademark double-tracked vocal style sounds better than it has in years. Some editions of the album include a cover of "Black Night" by Deep Purple, with rewritten lyrics by Glen Benton. It is interesting to note that a passage of the song "The Lord's Sedition" is identitical to a section of the score from the movie Barb Wire. Track listing # "The Stench of Redemption" - 4:09 # "Death to Jesus" - 3:53 # "Desecration" - 4:31 # "Crucified for the Innocence" - 4:35 # "Walk with the Devil in Dreams You Behold" - 4:58 # "Homage for Satan" - 3:59 # "Not of This Earth" - 3:19 # "Never to Be Seen Again" - 3:24 # "The Lord's Sedition" - 5:41 # "Black Night" (Deep Purple cover) (LP/Japanese/Limited Edition CD bonus track) - 2:43 Personnel *Glen Benton - Vocals, bass, executive producer *Steve Asheim - Drums *Jack Owen - Lead & rhythm guitar *Ralph Santolla - Lead & rhythm guitar All music written by Steve Asheim. All lyrics written by Glen Benton. Published by Earache Music. Category:2006 albums